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To Thine Own Shelf

I wanted to use up more of the supplies in my Simon Says Stamp September Card Kit so I popped over to the Friday Mashup Challenge Blog to see if the challenge could get my gears spinning. It did! The FM176 challenge this week is to create a project using the provided sketch, or to create a project using an emboss resist technique, or to mash them up and create a project using the sketch and emboss resist. Here is the sketch:

And here’s my card:

My FM176 card

So, emboss resist is the process of heat embossing an image and then applying ink over top. The embossed areas resist the ink and stay vibrant. I’ve mostly seen this done with white embossed images, so I wasn’t sure if using coloured ink and clear embossing is strictly considered emboss resist, but hey, why not?

I cut a 4″ x 4″ white cardbase and protected the back of the card with some strips of Post-It tape. The Post-It tape also helped the card stay in place while I stamped and inked. Using one of the book stamps from the SSS To Thine Own Shelf set, I stamped with three colours of pigment ink from my Color Box Petal Point, Enchantment. To emboss, I used Ranger Superfine clear embossing power. I stamped and embossed one colour at a time and used my homemade anti-static bag in between each colour.

I wasn’t happy with how some of the books had embossed so I stamped over them with VersaMark ink and re-embossed to make sure my resist would work.

Once I was content with the embossed background, I used Gathered TwigsDistress Ink and a makeup sponge to cover the whole card front. Just for good measure, I added some water droplets for a bit of a more distressed look. This ink came in the card kit and it’s my first time ever using Distress Ink. I think I might be hooked. My resist technique isn’t perfect but the Distress Ink helped smooth everything out and dried beautifully.

I used a scrap of patterned paper (also from the kit, October Afternoon, Public Library) and some stickers to finish off the card. I wanted to pop up the sentiment but since it was a sticker I rubbed some baby powder on the back before applying my foam tape to make sure none of the edges got stuck down.

I took an extra long Labour Day weekend to visit my family so I didn’t get a chance to craft much last week. There is no better way for me to get my creative juices flowing again than a Colour Me…! Colour Challenge. I love playing along and this week the CMCC#36 was to create a card that uses only yellow and neutrals.

Since I was traveling last week, I hadn’t had a chance to use my September SSS Card Kit so I was quick to grab that when I started designing my CMCC#36 card. Here it is:

My CMCC#36 card

To start, I trimmed a piece of white cardstock to 2½” X 4¼”. I used my Martha Stewart Mini Scoring Board to score at ¼” intervals to make the wainscoting texture. I trimmed another piece of white cardstock to about ¼” x 4¼” and scored it at 1/8″ intervals for the trim piece. I have to admit that the scoring wasn’t all smooth sailing and I did mess up (more than once!) because the paper kept slipping on my scoring board. In the end, I used a little bit of tape runner to hold the paper in place and that worked like a charm.

I cut a piece of yellow patterned paper from the kit (October Afternoon, Public Library) to 3″ x 4¼ and adhered it down to my craft cardbase. Using my glue runner, I adhered down the wainscoting and trim.

Before I began stamping, I lay out the stamps on a scrap paper cut to 3″ x 4¼” (the same size as the patterned paper) to plan the design. Once I was happy with the layout, I stamped the card using a black pigment ink. I think a dye ink would have have a smoother finished look but I don’t have one so I just ‘went with it’. I stamped the shelf first and clear embossed it, and then followed with the other images starting closest to the shelf and moving upward.

After I stamped the frame, I used a black marker to draw the strings and a gold marker to colour a pearl for the nail. I used the same gold marker to fill in the lines on the book bindings because I didn’t like seeing the patterned paper through.

I used scissors to cut the brown insert for the frame and box and adhered them to the card using my Zig 2-Way Glue Pen.

Once I gave the ink plenty of time to dry, I added Glossy Accents to the frame, box, and clock for some shine and texture.

That’s it for now. Thanks so much for dropping by! Hope to see you here again soon!

**Edit** Since I posted this card, I’ve gone back and cut a tiny mouse hole at the bottom of the card. I wasn’t sure this would work so I waited until after I photographed it. I think it adds a cute touch of whimsy.